What follow are the official rules for the annual Cantab Team Selection Slams. The number of rounds and advancing poets are subject to change, depending on National Poetry Slam team size and competitor attendance at the prelims.

Cantab Team Selection Slam Rules

• Poets who wish to slam will check in to draw no later than 9:00 P.M.
• Poets will have to pay the cover charge.
• Competing poets may not read in or host any portion of the open mic or slam.
• Competing poets may not work the door, wait tables, or bartend.
• Five judges (or teams of judges) will be selected from the audience by the slam host and bout manager. Up to two of these judges may be Cantab "regulars" as per the discretion of the slam host and bout manager. All judges will be encouraged to choose poetry over performance.
• There will always be at least one warm-up poet before the slam. Whether or not there is a break and/or sorbet poet between rounds of the slam will be left to the discretion of the host and bout manager.
• Scores are not cumulative between nights; each night is clean slate.
• All NPS rules apply: original work, no props, no costumes, no music, 3:10 or less.

Cantab Team Selection Preliminaries Rules and Format

• All poets who have qualified to slam, even those who do not intend to attend NPS, are encouraged to slam.
• Before the slam begins, poets will draw a random order for both rounds. Poets who have guaranteed draws (i.e.: winners of the group slams) may apply them on this night only.
• Poets may use any original poem in their repertoire, including poems used in previous open slams and poems used to qualify in previous years.
• The top twelve cumulative scorers will advance to finals the following week. If there is a tie for the last spot to advance, all tied poets will advance.

Cantab Team Selection Semi-Finals Rules and Format

• Poets who are qualified to slam in the semi-finals but do not intend to commit to the Cantab Slam Team are encouraged (but not required) to drop out to permit the next poet back in the prelims to advance.
• The order of the first round will be based on the cumulative finish from preliminaries (lowest finisher first, top poet last). The order for the second round will be by random draw.
• Poets may not use poems they used in the previous week's preliminaries.
• The top nine cumulative scorers will advance to finals the following week. If there is a tie for the last spot to advance, all tied poets will advance.

Cantab Team Selection Finals Rules and Format

• Poets who slam in the finals are considered committed to the Cantab Slam Team. Poets who are not interested in attending NPS with the Cantab may not slam in finals.
• Poets may not use poems they used in the previous weeks' preliminaries or semi-final.
• The order of the first round will be based on the cumulative finish from semi-finals (lowest finisher first, top poet last). The order for the second and third rounds will be by random draw.
• The top five scorers (cumulative over all three rounds) comprise the Cantab Slam Team.
• If there is a tie for the fifth slot, all tied poets will return to the stage for one more round. The order will be the same as the last round. Standard NPS tie-breaker rules will be used (each judge will indicate a preference, not a score).

Poets are encouraged to contact the SlamMaster directly by email with any questions or concerns.

The following is expected of poets who qualify for the Cantab Slam Team:

• Attendance at the National Poetry Slam of that calendar year, assuming the Boston Poetry Slam @ the Cantab Lounge is qualified to attend.
• Financial responsibility for travel and stay at NPS (beyond whatever the team and venue are able to raise), assuming attendance.
• Open mic attendance at the Cantab 2-4 times per month.
• Practice with the team at least 2-4 times per month.
• Respect and support of teammates, coach, and home venue.

If a team member is unable to fulfill these responsibilities, or the poet declares a desire to depart the team and/or slam for another team, the poet will no longer be considered a member of the Cantab Slam Team for the purposes of PSi.

If a team member departs, but the team is still at the minimum size for NPS competition, the remaining team members will decide if they wish to replace the team member, with final discretion falling to the SlamMaster. If the departure of one or more team members causes the team to be under the minimum size for NPS competition, the team member(s) will automatically be replaced until the team reaches minimum size.

In all cases, the replacement hierarchy for a team member is as follows:

1. The next available top scorer(s) in the final rounds of the Cantab Team Selection Finals.
2. The current Champion of Champions of the 8x8 series.
3. The top scorer(s) in an open poetry slam held exclusively for the purpose of choosing a new team member (or members), if time and venue constraints allow.
4. The next available top scorer(s) in the Cantab Team Selection Semi-Finals.
5. The next available top scorer(s) in the Cantab Team Selection Preliminaries.
6. The next available least recent winner(s) of the open poetry slam since the Cantab Team Selection Slams.
7. Open vote among all interested parties, wherein said parties may not vote for themselves. Ties will be broken by the vote of the SlamMaster.